Page 80 of I Wish You Were Mine

“I miss you,” he breathes. “So damn bad, Tiny.”

My heart twists. I keep my eyes closed. “I’ve missed you too.”

“I said one night, but I knew even then I was full of shit.”

I laugh, my eyes welling with tears. Relief blooms inside my torso. Relief for what, I can’t tell. That I’m not alone in this moment or in my feelings?

“You want to keep the baby,” he continues.

My breath catches. I open my eyes to meet his. Something about the softness I see there, the steadiness, makes the truth ring inside my heart. “Yes. I do. I have no idea what I’ll doabout my career or... or us, or any of that. But I can figure it out. I will figure it out.”

“We’ll figure it out.” The hand on my stomach moves a little lower. “I’m in, Tiny.”

My heart soars. Rips through the air, fighter-jet style.

Wow.

Wow wowwow.

“Why the change of heart?” I manage. This is happeningfast. Too fast, maybe.

Or not fast enough.

His forehead rolls over mine as he gives his head a shake. “I gotta try again sometime. I’d like to try again with you.”

Oh, Jesus, could this moment get any more romantic? I’m crying and he’s confessing and all the while, a tiny heart beats between us.

He straightens, lifting his head. “Can I make you a cappuccino? Decaf, maybe?”

“I’d love that.”

A couple minutes later he comes back outside with a steaming mug in hand. He sets it on the coffee table and motions for me to sit on the cushy outdoor sofa beside it. “Put your feet up. Helps with the swelling.”

I laugh, discreetly pinching myself on the arm. Is this real?

Am I dreaming?

“My legs aren’t swollen yet, thank goodness.”

I settle on the sofa. Tuck sits beside me, resting his arm on the back of the cushions behind me. He sips his coffee thoughtfully while looking up at the stars. I don’t know if it’s the drop in temperature or the change in seasons, but the stars seem especially bright tonight. So clear you can see even the tiniest ones.

I want to snuggle into him. Curl up in his heat. But I don’t want to break the spell. I also don’t want either of us to get too turned on. Tonight—I get the feeling it’s for talking. The naked stuff we can do later.

I really hope we get to do more naked stuff.

“I owe you an explanation,” Tuck begins. “I don’t talk about Katie’s mom much because it... I think it confuses Katie. She and my ex, Becca, don’t really have a relationship. Becca moved out when Katie was six weeks old. Hasn’t been back since.”

I suck in a breath. “That’s rough.”

“It was awful.” Tuck runs a hand down his face. “Her leaving—our relationship ending—it fucked me up. Bad. I was crazy about her. When she left, I wanted to fall apart. I was falling apart. But I had a new baby to take care of, so I couldn’t.”

“Oh, Tuck. You never really got the chance to mourn. Or process.” The pieces are starting to come together now. I’ve suspected for a while that his broodiness, his coldness, comes from some sort of wound. He’s such a good man and father. He has so many good friends who clearly love him. There’s no way Tuck is mean or rude orcowardlyat his core.

Something happened to him. It’s a big deal that he’s finally telling me what that something is.

He lifts his mug to his lips. “I just kind of shut down, you know? The pain was... yeah, unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. And I got a third degree burn on my second tour in Afghanistan.” He pulls up his shorts to reveal the patch of rumpled skin there. “Had to get a skin graft and everything. That hurt like a motherfucker. But Becca asking for a divorce? That hurt way, way worse.”

I put a hand on his leg, right where the graft is. “I was wondering what this was from. What happened?”

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